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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. pop — to visit
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. snap — to click
  9. pop — soda
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. wound — an injury
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. game — a match
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. wound — an injury
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. game — wild animals
  20. tube — the underground
  21. pop — music
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. tube — a container
  24. leaves — of a tree

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com